Have you ever found yourself grasping in vain for that ideal descriptive word lost somewhere within the misty recesses of your vocabulary? Or felt frustrated that an oddly shaped structure or pretty setting you wished to portray in writing didn’t quite translate clearly to paper? If the answer to either of these questions is yes, then The Describer’s Dictionary is exactly the book you need. Open it, and you have not only just the right words but—bringing them to life—stellar literary examples of descriptive writing as well. The Dictionary concern itself with the observable, from shapes to buildings to human beings. “Referably” organized, the book uses a handy reverse, definition-to-term format that makes it easy to zero in on the term you’re seeking. For example, look up “Noses” to find “aquiline,” “leptorrhine,” and “snub-nosed.” And as an inspiration to any writer—showing how it’s done by the best—hundreds of colorful and evocative descriptive passages from such diverse authors as Dickens, Darwin, and Updike appear on facing pages, making this a singularly and richly different kind of reference book. The craft of description lives in literature, conversation, journalism, and personal letters. For help in painting pictures with the English language, The Desciber’s Dictionary is one of the most indispensable reference tools you can own.

Dictionary of Media and Communication Studies, 8th edition By James Watson, Anne Hill

The Watson and Hill dictionary in its 8th edition presents a fresh and comprehensive overview serving all aspect of the study of media and communication. It provides a detailed compendium of the different facets of personal, group, mass media and Internet communication and continues to be a vital source of information for all those interested in how communication affects our lives. The Dictionary of Media and Communication Studies has provided students and the general public alike with a gateway into the study of intercultural communication, public relations and marketing communications since 1984. New entries in this edition explore the profound shifts that have taken place in the world of communication in recent years. The impact of the new online leviathans such as Amazon, Facebook, Google, Twitter and YouTube is measured against the traditional dominance, globally, of the mass media. Other themes include the interesting changes affecting public service broadcasting, the role of advertising and PR, the nature and extent of regulation, the impact of globalization and the consumerization of knowledge and culture. This volume seeks to make its twenty-first century readers more media literate, as well as more critical consumers of modern news.

Ancient Mesopotamia was a highly complex culture whose achievements included the invention of writing. This illustrated text offers a reference guide to Mesopotamian religion, mythology and magic between about 3000 BC and the advent of the Christian era. Gods, goddesses, demons, monsters, magic, myths, religious symbolism, rituals and the spiritual world are all discussed in alphabetical entries ranging from short accounts to extended essays.

National Geographic Answer Book: Fast Facts About Our World

A multifaceted reference book for the 21st century, the Answer Book will fascinate with up-to-date, authoritative, and endlessly interesting information about the world today. From earth sciences to astronomy, from climate and habitats to human arts and cultures, from ancient history to cutting-edge technology, and including brief descriptions, flags, and statistics of all the countries of the world, it delivers exactly the kind of quick-dip information that modern readers crave. Maps, charts, diagrams, graphs, photographs, illustrations—some 600 pictures in all—combine with hundreds of fast facts and short pieces on the people, places, wildlife, weather, history, and current events that matter in our world today. National Geographic Answer Book is a vital reference for school, a handy resource at the office, and a fabulous pick-up-and browse companion at home.

Show Business Homicides: An Encyclopedia, 1908-2009

A companion volume to the author’s Suicide in the Entertainment Industry: An Encyclopedia of 840 Twentieth Century Cases (2002), this reference work chronicles 298 cases of what can be broadly defined as “celebrity” homicides from the early twentieth century onward. Cases are drawn from the realms of film, theatre, music, dance and other entertainment fields. In each instance, the person was either the actual or suspected perpetrator or the victim of a murder. Included are entries on such well-known personalities as film comedian Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle, actress Sharon Tate, music producer Phil Spector, rap artist Notorious B.I.G., and superstar Michael Jackson. Each entry covers the crime, its legal disposition, and the subject’s personal and professional background, comprehensively documented with notes and a separate bibliography.